QuetzalFlight
by Sciencefictionsquirrel
Summary: My name is Ahnmir Shardae Cobriana, Ahn for short. I am what you could call a hybrid. My magic is powerful. This is my story. The story of my life, the story of who, and what, I am . . . Note: Genres subject to change
1. I am Ahnmir!

Quetzalflight

Disclaimer: I am NOT Amelia Atwater-Rhodes, so I don't own anything in the Kiesha'ra universe except this story

Summary: My name is Ahnmir Shardae Cobriana, Ahn for short. I am what you could call a hybrid. My magic is powerful. This is my story. The story of my life, the story of who, and what, I am . . .

Chapter 1: I Am Ahnmir

From the Gate, I looked out over my void. Over my _Ecl. _It was an expanse of desolate wasteland, pockmarked with craters and shimmering threads of magic. Just to the left of me is a large keep. My haven when the combination of magic and void is too much even for me. I closed my eyes, then opened them, and the path through the currents of _Ecl_ became clear. I have long been _Mana'Ecl_, a Master of the Void. My _Ecl_ is dangerous if you don't know the path, which always changes. There, on the other side of the void, was the Vault. All the powers I did not immediately need((Immediately being within the next hour)), all the abilities that would only hinder me unless I needed them, were there, including, at the moment, my three force-changed forms. I acquired them several years ago. One was a Serpiente, the second Avian, the third human. I acquired two of them from close friends, who gave me their forms so that I could walk freely amongst either group without being bothered by people pestering the royal house or being feared. It was the Human form which I now sought.

I am feared by many, not merely because I am of their royal houses, but also because I exhibit magical abilities far in excess of my mother's and father's put together. I discovered long ago that my magic was almost beyond my control. That is why I created the Vault: to store my abilities until I needed them. I also train here, harnessing my power. Hence the desolate wasteland; my magic is devastating, even after years of riding the void.

I walked along the path until I reached the Vault. I opened the doors, and there, floating inside it, were thousands of magical abilities. I entered, walking toward the magics which outlined the third force-changed form. I placed my hand on it, absorbed it into myself. The magic now pulsed with energy in sync with my heartbeat, as much a part of me as my body.

I began the journey back to the Gate. It is always harder returning than entering, as the void always flows toward the Vault, pushing me back with it. After reaching the Gate, which was woven from pure magic, I placed my hand on the veil which separated my world from the real one. The curtain parted,and I walked forward. No sooner had I completely passed it, when I opened my eyes, sitting in a meditative position on the dirt floor of a small wooden hut in the middle of a small village. I had developed a culture in this and the surrounding villages, on the other side of the world from the Falcons, Serpiente, and Avians. Some careful manipulation of their minds, and I had crafted a mythological creation story, a deity that I could pass as, and started a civilization. In my fully human form, I was a man named Teon, a priest of the deity I had crafted. In my fully animal form, I was the Feathered Serpent, worshiped by all the inhabitants of this area. I had assumed the identity of the deity I had created named Quetzalcoatl, and I was accepted for what I was. I truly was a near-deity to these humans.

I changed into the form that had become Teon, and I emerged from my hut. I had to go about and perform my duties. Late at night, I would assume my second form, and fly, allowing myself only a few hours of sleep a night, as I had to wake up early to retrieve Teon's form form the Vault.

After a long day of priestly duties and selecting which of crops and livestock were most likely to be accepted as sacrifices to Quetzalcoatl, I returned home. The moon had risen about an hour ago, so everyone else had already returned home and was either asleep or indulging in family things. Along the wall of my hut was a small bowl of water. I walked over to it, whispered the activating words, wove the magics, and four images appeared as I called them up. One showed Wyvern's Court, the second showed Hawk's Keep, and the third showed the Serpiente palace. All to be expected, given my interest in the affairs of those people. However, the fourth showed the island of Ahnmik. Specifically, it showed the Tower of_ shm'Ecl._ Servos was there, guarding those who had succumbed to it. Finally, I reached forward, searching for the future, trying to read what was to come. A haze filled the watery bowl, blurry, confusing, only a feeling slipping through. An eerie calm. Unsettling, disturbing, like the calm before disaster strikes. As I observed it, I slowly let the force-change slip away, and I changed. I had to go visit someone. First, I became a human with several unsettling features. Eyes that appeared to be several colors at once, ranging from garnet to gold and hair that was a combination of black and brown streaks, to name a few. Then I transitioned further. My Serpiente scales emerged first, and I turned into a serpent. Then the goshawk wings. Finally, I felt the last changes occur.

I slithered out of my hut and took to the sky. As I spread my two sets of wings, one goshawk, the other peregrine, I thought, I am Ahnmir Shardae Cobriana, son of Oliza Shardae Cobriana and Nicias Silvermead, Heir to three thrones, more powerful than any one race, and a focal point for Ahnmik and Anhamirak's powers, opposite each other in a fragile, yet predominantly stable, balance. I am the Quetzalcoatl, the Feathered Serpent!


	2. The Quetzalcoatl's Covenant

QuetzalFlight

A/N: Okay, it has been forever and a day since my last update, but I lost my muse for this story for a while, partially as a result of bigger things, partially as a result of issues with the friend who introduced me to the Kiesha'ra series. An update from one of that friend's stories inspired me to get back to this one, and also to put a character inspired by her into this story. This one's for you. You know who you are. I won't name names here. Also, I've replaced some of the content in Chapter 1 to bring it more in-line with my new vision for this story.

Chapter 2: The Quetzalcoatl's Covenant

I arrived at my destination a mere fifteen minutes later, having traversed a considerable distance at speeds considerably faster than most people would think possible, thanks to a little bit of magic. I landed on a cliff above the entrance to a hidden temple, shifting into my demi form and descending a treacherous staircase before reaching the entrance. The temple was a drastic difference from the majority of the local architectural tendencies, mainly because I had constructed it inside the rock of the cliff. It was a large temple, and one known only to a small sect of people, a group that no one else knew existed. The Covenant of Quetzalcoatl. They numbered 20, including acolytes and apprentices, and they were my personal priests and priestesses. They alone knew that I was in truth not a god. And they kept that secret well. They were also non-natives to this region, like myself.

As I entered deep into the complex, through a maze of corridors lit by torchlight and magic, I sent out a call, a thought, to the members of the Covenant, summoning them to the main chamber. When I reached the chamber, I scanned the twenty faces standing before me. I looked at one of them in particular, an older woman, named Kandra. At least, that was the name she had taken upon her induction into the Covenant.

"How have things fared in my absence?" I asked.

"Very well, my lord Quetzalcoatl." she replied. "All of the monitoring spells show nothing outside the ordinary; your subjects across the land continue their reverence unquestioningly."

My eyes narrowed, and my voice was a razor's edge when I spoke. "Not those things. The others. You know what I what to hear about."

She cringed. "They are . . . inconclusive. Clouded. Confused. The future . . . it is never an easy thing to read . . . or understand."

I nod. "Thank you." I turn to another priestess, young, merely an apprentice. "Irika, come with me." I say. "The rest of you are dismissed."

They nod, and bow, exiting the room, except for Irika, who follows me as I exit, heading for another chamber. "Your skills with foresight are formidable, Irika, are they not?" I ask.

"They are, Lord Quetzalcoatl."

"Please, call me Ahnmir, Irika." I say. "No need to be so formal around a friend."

She nods. "Yes, Ahnmir."

I smile. "Then you feel it, too, don't you?"

She nods again, the look on her face grim, disturbed. "Like the calm before a storm."

"Energy. Tension. Buildup. Anticipation of what is to come, as though the universe is holding its breath and waiting to see what happens."

"The storm is brewing; all we can do is prepare."

"Yes, but prepare for what?" I say.

Hazel eyes glance at me. "What do you mean?"

"What is the storm going to be? What is brewing? What do we need to be ready for?"

"Falcons." One simple word. One very simple, very powerful word comes from her lips with absolute certainty.

I nod in agreement, thankful that I did not have to voice it. "Whatever it is, they're always at the center of it." I say. "Meddlers, puppeteers, and cowards all. They feel the world is theirs to direct. And to think, I came all this way to escape their grasp. Are they coming here, no longer content to meddle and interfere in Avian and Serpiente affairs?"

"I do not know." Irika says. "All I know is that it feels like they are involved in this."

"Then let us see if we can pierce the void any better from the chamber." I say. I doubt it, but I may at least be able to confirm my fears.

We reach the chamber I had in mind, a large, spherical room, with the entrance at the equatorial region. I extinguish the torches with a wave, disengage the magical illumination with another, and, taking Irika's hand, step out into the void, walking on air into the center of the chamber. I close my eyes and utter the words that activate the magic, turning this room, with its perfectly smooth, polished walls, into what amounts to a scrying room. I search the future, aided by Irika's sight, looking for anything important.

After several minutes, and failing to find anything conclusive, besides reaffirming and enhancing the feeling of a storm brewing on the horizon, I end it and return to the walkway.

I looked at Irika. "Have someone keep a constant eye on the border watch spells. I want to know if anything magical comes near our borders. With plenty of warning. You know how to contact me." I say, heading off.

A few moments later, Irika joins me as I stand on the cliff, looking out over the vast ocean that separates my lands from those of my ancestors. The moon and stars cast an almost magical light over it, and I smile. "So far away. Our home, so very far away."

"It was our home, Ahnmir. Not anymore." she says.

I reach out, take her hand, and grin. "Shall we fly?" I ask.

"We shall." she replies. We shift into our animal forms, my choice this time being the goshawk to accompany her avian form. We take off, flying out over the surf, enjoying the peace while it lasted.

We both knew it was only a matter of time before it shattered. And when it did, I would do whatever I had to to make sure my new life here survived. If it truly was the Falcons, I would not let them tear my life apart again, even if I had to tear the island of Ahnmik asunder to make them stop, even if it took piles upon piles of Falcon corpses to convince them that they had been foolish to stick their beaks in my business.


End file.
